


The Enchanted Lands

by Calamity95



Category: Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga), The Owl House (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Creatures & Monsters, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Magic, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Bullying, Cat Ears, Eventual Romance, F/F, F/M, Fantasy, Magic, Monsters, Multi, Original Character(s), Original Universe, POV Female Character, POV First Person, Role-Playing Game, Romance, Spells & Enchantments, Swordfighting, Swords & Sorcery, Teen Crush, Teen Romance, Video Game Mechanics
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-14 11:21:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,523
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29170275
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Calamity95/pseuds/Calamity95
Summary: Luz enters the Enchanted Lands VRMMO for fun but the game soon becomes a nightmare as players start to die and find themselves trapped in the virtual world.
Relationships: Amity Blight/Luz Noceda, Kirigaya Kazuto | Kirito/Yuuki Asuna | Asuna
Comments: 3
Kudos: 11





	1. Prologue

**AN**

When it came to the character stats I rolled a dice in real life so they are completely random.

* * *

The Enchanted Lands Two VRMMO (short for Virtual Reality Massively Multiplayer Online) game has been something I have long-awaited as the series finally became accessible through the NerveGear. I have been waiting for this day for a long time, and my hands are shaking with excitement to the extent that I can barely put my headset on. Right, let us run through the checklist: Mum? Out! Check, she may have stopped me from playing when the game was released at midnight, but she will not stop me now. Alarm set for when she will return home. Check, it is better to be safe than sorry after enduring a lecture from her for wasting the day away on this game. Snacks for afterwards. Check, my mouth is watering, and I am tempted to eat them now, but I barely contain myself.

Laying down on my bed, it is not long before the NerveGear starts up and the game loads and I find myself standing in a small stone room with a mirror right in front of me. It seems simple enough I just need to tape the part of my body I want to change for my avatar. It is a little creepy how the game can perfectly replicate my body, but I ignore those feelings as I go about creating Luzura by first changing my race from human to cat girl. All the game races have their benefits, but I just could pass up on those cute cat ears once I saw them. But aside from changing my race, I give myself long green hair, change my eye colour to green and finally make my avatar slightly taller than I am in real life.

Next, I have to select my class from the lengthy list. Many people criticised the Enchanted Lands game series at first because of its wide selection of classes. Still, it soon becomes a feature loved by players because you really could tailor-make an avatar that is perfect for you. Anyway, I waste little time picking the Mage class, which is the closes thing to a witch class that I could get. But now comes the part of the game that luck guarantees governs, rolling a D20 to get my starting stat scores.

Strength is first up. It determines who much damage you can do with melee weapons and how much you can carry. Strength is not an important stat for a Mage, but I still hope it is not too low. Fifteen not a bad roll but I hope it my strength doesn’t become my highest ranked stat. Next up is Perception a skill that determines how far you can see and how easy it is to spot hidden enemies. Again, this is not a stat for me but something a low score could hurt me in. Eleven, just above average. The third stat is something more important, Endurance. Endurance determines your characters’ hit points, and if this score is too low, even the weakest monsters could kill you in one shot. Five that could be a problem but thankfully Mage’s are not frontline fighters, so hopefully, I can get some protection from others.

So far, it is a mixed bag, but now I am onto the most important stat for a Mage known as Intelligence. Intelligence determines the number of Magical Points your characters have which you use to cast spells, so I hold my breath as I roll the dice hoping for my highest score so far. Twenty, twenty! A perfect score only gets better because the Mage class automatically adds another two points to the stat. If I could, then I would be cheering my head off right now at such a score, but unfortunately my avatar is still restricted in movement until the character-building process has been completed. I will celebrate later, but I have to move onto my Charisma stat, for now, so I quickly collect myself and roll the dice. Another fifteen. Charisma is not a stat I use much but the bonus it gives to the Barter skills I can see coming in handy.

Just two more to go and Agility is the next up out of the two. Agility is a skill that determines how fast you can move, how hight and long you can jump and how likely you are to dodge incoming attacks. My Cat Girl race already gives me an additional two points in Agility, but I still need to roll, and unfortunately, I get a three from the dice. I guess I am not going to be that fast and really relying on my allies for protection. The final stat is called Luck which determines the amount of loot dropped and how likely you are to score a critical hit on your enemies. Luck is a particularly important stat and one which I have seen turn the tide of battle in an instant. Luck is another stat that I want to roll high on, and luckily, I roll a fourteen, not as high of a score as I would have liked but still good enough.

Now I get a pick a Perk. There is only a handful to select when you first start, but more will unlock when you level up, and your character can gain a new perk every five levels. In the end, I select the Magical Perk after looking them over and thinking about it for a moment. The Magical Perk grants me an additional five Magical Points, and out of all the options, it is the best choice for my class.

Now finally I get to move onto the last step before I can enter the game which is collecting my starting equipment. A wooden chest appears at my feet which opens automatically revealing the items within. A white robe that grants me plus one Defence is the first thing I see along with a wooden staff and beneath all that is a money sack that can hold an infinite amount of the game’s currency called Snails. So far, I only have ten of the coins, but that is okay as I am only starting out and I am sure I will make it rich soon enough. The final item in the chest is a spell scroll that automatically gives me my first spell, which is something randomly assigned and turns out to be a fireball spell. All I have to do with all that is done is enter my character’s name, and Luzura is ready to enter the world of the Enchanted Lands.


	2. Chapter 1

**_"Welcome to The_** **_Enchanted Lands_** ** _,"_**

**_"New Town Discovered: Town of Beginnings,"_ **

**_"New Location Discovered: Spawn Zone, Central District,"_ **

**_"Safe Zone: Yes,"_ **

**_"Threats: None,"_ **

I smile, seeing those words fade, and the centre of town slowly come into focus. The Spawn Zone looks even more beautiful in VR (Virtual Reality) than in real on a computer screen. With a circle of white stone archways surrounding me and a tall pillar in the Spawn Zone centre, it looks even better than it did on my computer screen. **_"I Can even smell things!"_** I hop up and down in excitement. I can smell the flowers in the flower beds accompanying the stone archways and even things like cooking food in the distance. The only complaint I have is that I am finding the mini-map with my character HP (Health Points) and MP (Magical Points) bars below it a little bit distracting. I am sure I will get used to it. It is just like in the game. Only it feels strange in VR.

**_"This is more realistic than I thought it would be,"_** The paved stone floor beneath my feet is uneven and ends up tripping over some lizardman player while NPC's (Non-Player characters) mingle with other NPC's and players as if they were alive. It is easy to believe the critics and beta testers who said this world is as real as our own. **_"I wish I could have been one of those beta testers," I_** am so jealous of the one thousand players who were allowed to test the game, but my mother thought it was a good thing and that I would not be distracted from my exams at school that were going on at the same time as the beta test. But at least I am here now and one of the first players to spawn in on the launch of the game.

"Hello world, I'm back," It seems I am not the only one excited to be playing this game as a dark-haired player who appears to be a swordsman runs off imminently out of the Spawn Zone.

He must have been one of the lucky thousand who got to take part in the beta test. Unlike everyone else, myself included, that player runs through the main street of the town unaffected by the beauty of the world around him. But there is no rush, I have several hours, and there is no need to throw myself into levelling up my character. I might as well enjoy everything this world has to offer. Walking down the main street, in the same direction that dark-haired play ran off in, I soon find myself stood in the middle of a busy market.

**_"New Location Discovered: Market Street, Southern District,"_ **

**_"Safe Zone: Yes,"_ **

**_"Threats: None,"_ **

Market Street is breathtaking. Wooden stands lie on either side of the street, selling everything from snacks and souvenirs to weapons and armour. I think I even see an NPC haggling with another player over ale. Everything about this game is too good to believe and too realistic to be real. This is only the first town. **_"I can't wait to see what else this game has in store for me,"_** If every other town, village or even tavern on the side of the road has been given this much detail, then I doubt any other game will be able to match The Enchanted Lands for ten maybe twenty years. This game has raised the bar far higher than anything that has come before it.

"Hey, why don't we form a party?" Already players are grouping together into parties, and I can spot some players on the lookout for strong-looking players to recruit to their side.

"I don't now… maybe we could work together…" A shy looking girl replies, fidgeting with the hem of her skirt.

"Hey, what about you with the staff," Dam, he caught me staring. "You don't have to be shy. You can join us as well."

"I'm sorry, but I am just exploring right now," I quickly respond before I take off running.

There was something about his stare that sent shivers down my spine. I would be worried about that other girl he was trying to recruit, but I think it is clear to everyone but him that that girl is really a boy using a female avatar. I was fooled by a player like that before, but now that I know the signs, it is hard not to see them. I run into a side street onto the other side of the buildings where several cafes, restaurants and taverns line the street, looking out onto a large, beautiful river that cuts through the town. The water sparkles, and I can see fish swimming up and down the stream while fisherman tries to catch them. Unfortunately, that beauty also distracts me, and I end up…

"Watch it, nitwit," Someone snaps as I bump into them.

**_"Another Azura fan!"_** The girl I ended up bumping into based her character on Azura as well, only she chose her characters race to be a High Elf instead of a catgirl like me. That choice will give her an advantage over me regarding magic, but I would prefer to have my kitty cat ears over the boost the elven race would have given me. Maybe we could form a part…

"Not even going to apologise?" A girl who appears to be a three-eye demon asks, but she must be a half-demon because she has some human traits. "Do you lack in manners, or don't you know you are supposed to apologise to someone after you run into them." A wicked grin appears on the three-eyed demon's lips that has me taking a step back. "Or are you foolishly trying to pick a fight with my friend?"

"I'm sorry," I bow, lowering my head. "It was just an accident."

"Just be more careful in the future. Let us get moving, guys," The Azura look-alike orders as she walks off with the half-demon and a few other girls start to walk towards the market.

I doubt she would want to form a party with me since she is already in a large group, and I do not think I can work with that half-demon girl if she does let that in. **_"But maybe we can still be friends!"_** After all, she is a fellow fan of Azura, so maybe we could meet up to discuss the books and even play together whenever that half-demon is not around. **_"But maybe she doesn't want anything to do with me,"_** I shake my head, thinking back to what my mother said on my first day of school and was worried about making friends. **_"Anyone could be your friend Cariño. You just need to smile and ask them,"_** Taking a deep breath, I move to catch up with the group.

"Can I ask you something?" I ask, reaching them before they step into the market.

"What is it?" The Azura fan snaps back, turning to face me shooting me a glare. "You better not be wasting my time."

"Did you by any chance… model your avatar after Azura?" I ask, hoping to work up the courage to ask her to be my friend.

"I…" The Azura fan begins, but…

"Don't be ridiculous," The half-demon interrupts before laughing to herself. "As if she would model herself after some loser from a children's book. Do not tell me that is what you did. You did, didn't you? How childish can you be?"

I hide under the hood of my robe as the group starts laughing at me and calling me a baby, and asking if my mum is babysitting me in this world. **_"Azura is not just for children!"_** I want to yell at them. I want to tell them that Azura is a great character and role model who always fights for what is right and is kind to everyone. I want them to understand. I want them to stop putting down such a wonderful character from a terrific book. But all I can do is stand there hiding my face as they continue to ridicule Azura and me. Looking up, I can see the girl I thought was a fellow fan looking down. At least she is not insulting me. But as she looks up and our eyes meet, I have the feeling there is something she wants to say.


End file.
